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Game 81, Cubs at Mariners

Odd start time, and odd uniforms today. The M’s and Cubs are wearing uniforms from 1909 – the Cubs sporting the, er, Cubs uniforms of that year and the M’s donning Seattle Turks jerseys. The Turks were in the old Northwest league, then categorized as class B. With the Pacific Coast League pulling back from the northwest, the B-division NWL was pretty advanced, and it wasn’t too rare for players to jump from the NWL to the majors. There were plenty of local teams in the league – Tacoma’s original Tigers played in the league from 1906-1917, Seattle joined in 1907, and over the 12 or so years the league operated, there were teams in Bellingham, Spokane, Victoria, Vancouver, Grays Harbor, Aberdeen, Everett, Butte and Great Falls.

Seattle’s club was known as the Siwashes for its first two years, but they changed it, perhaps realizing that “Siwash” was a racist, derogatory term for Native Americans.* So, in 1909, they became the Turks** (sensitivity isn’t a light switch you just flick on, apparently) and the club won an astounding 109 games to win the league title. Maybe because they wanted to go out on top, and maybe because the Ottoman Empire was both far away and fading, they changed their name again the following year – this time to the Giants. The Northwest League had some pretty good names, if you look past things like ‘Siwashes’ (they probably went with that since Spokane was already in the league as the Indians). The Vancouver club’s name in the inaugural season was the “Horse Doctors.” “Veterinarians” was apparently too hifalutin. Victoria was the “Legislators” which is the sort of name that probably wouldn’t make anyone’s short list these days (though Sacramento had a similar name, the Solons, around this time).

Minor League baseball was in flux around the turn of the century, trying to stay profitable in the sparsely populated far west. There’d been a Pacific Northwest League years before, which then merged with a California league to form the Pacific Coast League. The Seattle Indians were a part of that first season in 1903, but the league contracted in 1906, and Seattle merged with the four-year old Northwest League. Tacoma migrated to the PCL for just one season before essentially re-joining the Northwest League. Portland also moved from the PCL (where they were the Beavers) to the NWL (where they became the Pippins).

OK, enough history. The M’s face the Cubs’ immensely talented right-hander Jeff Samardzija today. The Cubs famously bought Samardzija away from the NFL (he was a great wide receiver at Notre Dame) and then watched in horror as he moved through the minor leagues with Blake Beavan-ish strikeout numbers. He threw a darting 95-98 sinker, a slider and a splitter, but these generated contact, not whiffs. Something clicked for him in 2008, and he started getting K’s – he struck out over a batter an inning in is initial cup of coffee that year. In 2009, his K rate fell again, and paired with his poor control and home run problem, he regressed to a sub-replacement-level pitcher. In 2010, he was actually even worse, with fewer K’s, more BBs and HRs. He’d dumped his sinker, become an extreme fly ball pitcher, and changed his delivery from a whippy three-quarters to more of an over-the-top release. He looked like he was well on his way to becoming a very expensive bust.

In 2011, everything changed. He moved his delivery back closer to where it was when he came up, ditched his sub-par curve that he threw in 2009-10, and his velo played up as a reliever. He had a very good year, so it surprised me when the Cubs moved him back to the rotation in 2012. His fastball is still oddly hittable for a 96mph pitch with plenty of movement, but his splitter is a real wipeout pitch, especially to lefties, and his slider’s very good against righties. But one of the biggest things that helped Samardzija take his big step forward was refinement in his location. Both lefties and righties have punished Samardzija on middle-in pitches, and they still do. Early in his career, his command was terrible, so he mixed a ton of walks with centered pitches (and, I’m guessing, some ill-advised advice to “control the inside corner” and push people off the plate). As his command improved, he was able to pitch to the outside edge much more effectively, and that’s helped him get to his breaking balls – his first strike percentage moved from about 56% from 2008-2011 to 62% these days.

The M’s send Aaron Harang to the hill, with Nick Franklin getting an off-day. You’re looking outside and really considering blowing this one off, aren’t you?

Franklin’s off-day isn’t just to give him a rest – he’s got a stiff neck, but is still available to pinch hit. Michael Saunders hurt his finger, so he’ll be out for a few days.

* – It’s amazing to look back at something like ‘Siwashes.’ I mean, it’d be inconceivable that you could get away with naming a sports team something like “Redskins” today, right? Wait, what?

** – The Young Turks revolution in 1908, which led to the restoration of Parliament that had been suspended in the 1870s and the re-imposition of the constitution of 1876, may have led to the somewhat strange-seeming decision for Seattle to have a club named the Turks. This situation held until the Young Turks coup of 1913 after the Empire’s lost nearly all of its possessions in the Balkans. I always wondered if that, and then the Empire’s participation in World War I got that line about the Dardanelles included in UW’s fight song “Bow Down to Washington.” Maybe the guy really just needed a rhyme for “excels.”

You can change your Twitter handle to most anything – as long as you leave your login info unchanged, your new nickname will show up in all your subscribers’ feeds.

tibbar on
June 29th, 2013 3:09 pm

I would have been all over the retro stuff except being of Armenian decent anything Turk is a major turn off especially of that era.

Chongo on
June 29th, 2013 3:14 pm

The beauty of the set they’re wearing today is that there is no disagreeable nomenclature on the physical jersey. In fact, its almost simplistic to the Penn State degree.

californiamariner on
June 29th, 2013 3:24 pm

Shocked to see Wedge put Miller batting 2nd.

henryv on
June 29th, 2013 3:57 pm

At the game. Too f- ing hot.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 4:05 pm

Did Saunders get his hand stepped on/spiked as he was diving back to 3B – is that how he hurt his hand? I never did see a replay of how he hurt it.

Out for a few days? We have heard this before. There have been several injuries this year that turned into something much more than a few days.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 4:06 pm

Shocked to see Wedge put Miller at second base as well as having him bat second.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 4:14 pm

Corey Hart is out for the season. His trade value just completely vanished. His free agent stock took a dive as well.

It will be tough to find a team bent on power without concern of health and defensive limitations. Teams like that just don’t exist.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 4:19 pm

Miller has played 2B before, so that part doesn’t shock me. I am sure Wedge would rather have Ackley hitting second, but after his comeback performance last night, that wasn’t going to happen today.

Maybe Ackley will get things going tonight and start working his way back up the lineup. Batting order doesn’t matter much but you definitely want your better hitters getting more AB’s over the course of a season. Maybe Wedge figures he doesn’t have any “better hitters” so why not bat the kid second.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 4:20 pm

Good looking uni’s.

Harang sure gets the crowd on his side, early. Especially if you are a Cubs fan.

I remember when this came out, but had forgotten about it. Incredibly funny now.

Eastside Suds on
June 29th, 2013 5:53 pm

Harang still has time to blow up here. Be patient. Lets hope the M’s can get into the Cubs bullpen soon so we can score a few.

henryv on
June 29th, 2013 5:58 pm

they could stop swinging at pitches high and outside. That would be nice…

henryv on
June 29th, 2013 6:02 pm

New team motto: “Because Turks”

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 6:08 pm

Great AB by Franklin!

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:30 pm

Steve, that video wasn’t funny… it was depressing.

Eastside Suds on
June 29th, 2013 6:31 pm

Kyle doesn’t look like he is seeing the ball well right now. Even the soft liner had him off balance. A couple of weeks now. Every player goes through it. The good ones adjust and recover. I consider him good btw.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:34 pm

It went over a little easier for me, but I’m on my third beer.

Will on
June 29th, 2013 6:35 pm

Oh my gosh, so sick of Wedge…

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 6:35 pm

What a shitty time to send the runner.

And right on cue – base hit.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:35 pm

I hope that was Bay’s own stupid decision to run…

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:36 pm

I just had to remind myself not to be surprised with Wedge’s calls anymore.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:36 pm

Followed by another Raul-esque fielding play by the Cubs!

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:37 pm

I’d be real surprised if that was Bay’s decision. Either way, someone deserves to be slapped.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:39 pm

Funny hearing the FOX announcers discussing the need to be careful with Smoak, even intentionally walking him. They apparently haven’t seen his splits vs. Lefties as a RHB.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:39 pm

Man, this color guy makes Blowers seem like Vin Scully!

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:40 pm

Raul, that was dumb.

Base running is one aspect of WAR, and Raul sucks at it.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 6:40 pm

.100 with RISP this season … And a hit!!! … And an out, anyway.

Because Turks.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:41 pm

So of course Smoak comes up with a hit. I should try for the reverse-jinx more often.

Too bad Raul got gunned-down at the plate.

Kazinski on
June 29th, 2013 6:41 pm

Raul was sent, so it wasn’t his fault. With two outs it was the right decision.

What I would criticize though, why didn’t Saunders pinch run for Ibanez?

HighlightsAt11 on
June 29th, 2013 6:42 pm

Smoak does his job. But who waved Ibanez in? From the video I could see he would be out at home BEFORE he reached third. And everyone knows Ibanez is slow.

The Mariners run bases almost as well as fish walk.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 6:43 pm

3B coach was sending Raul the whole way. Raul just did what he was told.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:43 pm

On a ball to left with a slow guy on base, I disagree that sending Raul was the right call.

Although I wondered why Saunders didn’t run for Morales. Bay isn’t particularly fast.

gopilots70 on
June 29th, 2013 6:43 pm

The second and the eighth innings are perfect examples why Wedge should be fired. Now

henryv on
June 29th, 2013 6:44 pm

seriously why is Raul in the game for that? does pinch running confuse wedge?

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 6:45 pm

I don’t blame Raul, but WHY was he sent? I don’t think it was the right call at all.

That hit was nowhere NEAR deep enough to send a runner who you know has very limited foot-speed.

You have Zunino coming up, and while he may be a rookie, he came through last night. Now you’re stuck with the same score.

I don’t agree with the send call at all.

I agree Saunders should have pinch-run.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:45 pm

I withdraw the “dumb” comment, though, since he was sent.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:45 pm

Kaziniski hit the nail on the head. This late in the game, you’d think we would have seen Saunders pinch-run.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:46 pm

Ow ow ow ow….

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:46 pm

Well, crap.

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 6:46 pm

Crap. It looks like it was a good idea Saunders wasn’t used.

Ackley freakin’ javelined his thumb into that turf.

phineasphreak on
June 29th, 2013 6:46 pm

What a %$#%ing nightmare.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 6:47 pm

Dislocated or broken thumb. Nasty.

Abe Almonte time … I guess.

Holy fucking curses.

phineasphreak on
June 29th, 2013 6:48 pm

He’s done.

HighlightsAt11 on
June 29th, 2013 6:48 pm

With two outs send the runner IF he has a chance to score. There was absolutely no chance. All rules of thumb should be taken in context.

Now Ackley is “done”. So what’s the next experiment for CF? Who will be called up?

Paul B on
June 29th, 2013 6:48 pm

Tying run, at home, I just assumed they’d run for Ibanez. I couldn’t believe it when I noticed it was Ibanez rounding third.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:48 pm

Wow. Really…. wow.

Kazinski on
June 29th, 2013 6:50 pm

We lose the DH, and the 8th hitter comes to the plate in the 9th. Blanco is the only one that can pinch hit.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:50 pm

Oh, I doubt it will be Almonte unless there’s a 60 day DL move. Give a nice warm welcome to the return of Carlos Peguero.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:50 pm

Saunders took the spike to his throwing hand, so he probably won’t play for a few days.

Thank The Lord for Endy. For a minute they were saying Bay was going to play center.

nvn8vbryce on
June 29th, 2013 6:51 pm

Man, this team has shitty luck…

Paul B on
June 29th, 2013 6:51 pm

This game feels like it was poorly managed. I admit I haven’t been paying a lot of attention.

I guess Blanco or Saunders.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:52 pm

Oh the pitcher is due up! Hahahahahahaahahahaha!!!

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 6:52 pm

I have literally never seen an AL team forfeit the DH for any reason. I know it’s happened before, just a first for me.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 6:52 pm

Is Ibanez the only OF that hasn’t been hurt or dinged up this year?

“Outfielder” if you prefer.

Morse
Guti
Chavez – limped around for a few days
Bay
Guti
Saunders
Guti
Ackley

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 6:52 pm

That’s a 15-day DL stint for Ackley, I’m relatively sure.

I’m hoping it’s ONLY 15 days…

HighlightsAt11 on
June 29th, 2013 6:53 pm

Win or lose Harang pitched a decent game against the Cubs. Could have saved his job, at least in the short term.

nvn8vbryce on
June 29th, 2013 6:53 pm

Too bad that Guti is made of glass…

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 6:53 pm

Oh, I doubt it will be Almonte unless there’s a 60 day DL move. Give a nice warm welcome to the return of Carlos Peguero.

Boy, all this makes you realize just how rare the career of a guy like Ripken was. This game just invites injuries…

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:57 pm

Sheesh, they might as well let the pitcher hit as Blanco.

Kazinski on
June 29th, 2013 6:57 pm

It’s Blanco or the pitcher. If we still had Vargas, I’d use him as a PH, otherwise Blanco is all you got.

Kazinski on
June 29th, 2013 6:58 pm

Now we see Saunders pinch run, an inning late.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 6:59 pm

Make the pain go away, Nick!

phineasphreak on
June 29th, 2013 6:59 pm

Come on Nicky.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 6:59 pm

I sort of want to see them tie it and then lose somebody else, so they have to play with either eight guys or a pitcher at one position…

G-Man on
June 29th, 2013 7:00 pm

I didn’t see the Ackley injury, but couldn’t he hang in for two more outs last inning? Could he hold the bat to hit?

OTOH, Blanco got on.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:00 pm

On a short term basis, Peguero makes more sense. He wouldn’t require a roster spot and Chavez can cover center. If Chavez went down, they’d likely place Bay there in a pinch.

But if someone heads to the 60 day DL -not necessarily Ackley, but maybe Montero- they could go with Almonte or even Romero, having cleared a 40 man spot. Though they’d have the issue of DFA’n someone upon the return.

I’d still tend to think that Peguero would be their choice, whether it’s the right call or not.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:03 pm

This is seriously one of the crazier games I’ve seen in a while.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 7:03 pm

Thanks Endy!

G-Man on
June 29th, 2013 7:03 pm

ENDY!

HighlightsAt11 on
June 29th, 2013 7:03 pm

Endy!!!!!

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:03 pm

YES!!!

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:03 pm

Chavez!!!

G-Man on
June 29th, 2013 7:03 pm

Steal second now.

Paul B on
June 29th, 2013 7:03 pm

This could be fun, extra innings with no bench at all and no DH.

Breadbaker on
June 29th, 2013 7:04 pm

Felix as pinch hitter coming up when the pitcher’s spot comes up again?

HighlightsAt11 on
June 29th, 2013 7:04 pm

Mr. Miller…end this game!

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:04 pm

I am actually agreeing with Karros. No WAY do I pitch to Chavez, I go after Miller.

Nice work, Endy.

phineasphreak on
June 29th, 2013 7:05 pm

Felix will PH.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:05 pm

Was that another hit & run put on?

Breadbaker on
June 29th, 2013 7:06 pm

God, these are two awful teams.

Paul B on
June 29th, 2013 7:07 pm

Felix will ask to PH. Not sure if Wedge would let him.

HighlightsAt11 on
June 29th, 2013 7:07 pm

I’ve got things to do, but this game just got interesting.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:08 pm

Yeah, no kidding, Breadbaker! This has been entertaining in a morbid way.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:09 pm

It’s like watching a train wreck…

nvn8vbryce on
June 29th, 2013 7:09 pm

Great. Extras.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 7:09 pm

Is Morban on the 40-man?

Puig came up from AA.

Morban is good at getting hurt, too – so he would fit right in.

Paul B on
June 29th, 2013 7:09 pm

More like a truck or bus swerving back and forth on an icy bridge.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 7:11 pm

Hope to hell that Zunino doesn’t get dinged up.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:11 pm

Well Westy, we might just see a pitcher play the field!

nvn8vbryce on
June 29th, 2013 7:11 pm

It reminds me of an oversized truck on the Skagit River Bridge…

gopilots70 on
June 29th, 2013 7:13 pm

G-man

They showed Ackley’s thumb as he was being attended to and it was already deep purple and looked liked one of those cartoon shots when they get hit by a hammer–like a balloon.

We are not looking at a 15 day DL I fear, more like 60.

Hope I am very wrong, as usual.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:13 pm

Ha! Wedge suggesting they’re basically a .500 ball club if they didn’t have that 8 game losing streak.

Brilliant. “We’d be contending if we simply won ten of the games we’ve lost.”

Kazinski on
June 29th, 2013 7:14 pm

If you need a pitcher to hit, use Perez, he’s got about 400 career PA. He’s a .158 hitter, which isn’t too bad for a pitcher. He hit .273 for the Mets as recently as 2009.

HighlightsAt11 on
June 29th, 2013 7:14 pm

The Mariners manage their roster as well as WDOT manages their bridges.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:14 pm

Love that Wedge quote – I bet a LOT of teams could say “if you don’t look at that long losing streak, our record looks a lot better!”

G-Man on
June 29th, 2013 7:14 pm

If we need another outfielder, the Royals just designated Jeff Francoeur for assignment. Just sayin’.

G-Man on
June 29th, 2013 7:16 pm

stevem, Perez would be good. I’d then let him pitch.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:16 pm

Maybe Ackley getting hurt is for the best – when he comes back, perhaps it’ll be under a better manager.

"They showed Ackley’s thumb as he was being attended to and it was already deep purple and looked liked one of those cartoon shots when they get hit by a hammer–like a balloon."

Ugh, OK.

The wisdom does seem to be to play like the game will end that inning. As far as losing the backup catcher, not good, but it's rare for it to haunt you..

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:19 pm

Wouldn’t it be funny if the pitcher complained about a distraction from the batter, with the back-pocket hanging out?

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:19 pm

Watch. They finagle the roster and call up Romero.

Westy, in a whole bunch of great observations from you…that last one is a favorite.

Ackley may not know it, but this might be the best thing that EVER happened to him in his major-league career, in disguise.

Pray they don’t hire another strategic numb-nuts to replace Wedge.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:22 pm

I figure If I throw enough crap against the wall, at least some of it occasionally will stick, SoZ.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 7:22 pm

Romero’s last game was June 23. I don’t know if he is in today’s Tacoma lineup, but it seems as if he might be a bit dinged up, himself.

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:23 pm

(Not saying Romero is the right call-up, mind you…only that it’s the move none of us would really expect to happen, by circumstance.)

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:24 pm

You owe us a dinger, Bay!

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 7:25 pm

Can Saunders grip a bat or will he strictly be bunting for a hit?

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:26 pm

Okay..hoping against hope Raul has a 10th HR in him this month.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:27 pm

It is oddly appropriate that Jose RAUUUUUUL signs are invariably held up by older women.

Give us a dinger, Raul!

Paul B on
June 29th, 2013 7:27 pm

if Ibanez homered here to win it, Wedge would look like a freaking genius.

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:27 pm

Cripple-count homer. Calling it.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:27 pm

“Those” not “Jose”.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:27 pm

Yeah, I noticed Romero had been out for a while too, Mike. And in his last game, he was the DH.

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:28 pm

Nuts.

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:30 pm

This is going to get the wrong kind of interesting, real quick.

Kazinski on
June 29th, 2013 7:30 pm

Ok, it makes sense now why Wedge didn’t PR Saunders for Ibanez. He was right. Saunders can’t play defense today, once Bay came in for Morales, Wedge can’t take out any of his outfielders. If he ran Saunders for Ibanez then Bay has to play the OF for Ibanez, and we lose the DH. Then when Ackley got hurt then we are left with Blanco or a pitcher to play the OF.

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:31 pm

I’m going to have to tip my cap to Schierholtz on that one.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 7:32 pm

And that’s how that is done. Schierholtz bunt.

Paul B on
June 29th, 2013 7:33 pm

I always think if you have a bunch of players that are too hurt to play, you should put some of them on the DL. But that’s just me.

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:33 pm

Ok, it makes sense now why Wedge didn’t PR Saunders for Ibanez. He was right. Saunders can’t play defense today, once Bay came in for Morales, Wedge can’t take out any of his outfielders. If he ran Saunders for Ibanez then Bay has to play the OF for Ibanez, and we lose the DH. Then when Ackley got hurt then we are left with Blanco or a pitcher to play the OF.

Hmm.

Guess it DOES make some sense.

But Wedge is still an idiot.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:34 pm

CRAP.

gopilots70 on
June 29th, 2013 7:35 pm

Romero is starting in left tonight for the Rainiers. Mike Curto said the other night that he had been out with a wrist problem.

Hey, did you see that D.J. Peterson has three homeruns and two of them grand salamis?

Not hitting much for average, but wow!

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 7:35 pm

We lost the DH anyway, Kaz. Even with Wedges mastery.

And now the game.

Dammit – never seen two teams more made for each other.

nvn8vbryce on
June 29th, 2013 7:35 pm

I hope the Cubs just put us out of our misery…

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:36 pm

A second bunt single?

Jesus.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:37 pm

Smoak looked like he’d already conceded this game.

nvn8vbryce on
June 29th, 2013 7:38 pm

Wedge conceded long ago…

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:40 pm

Wouldn’t it be arcane for Oliver Perez to get a hit that wins the game?

Kazinski on
June 29th, 2013 7:40 pm

We lost the DH anyway, Kaz. Even with Wedges mastery.

Yeah, but at least Blanco isn’t out in LF.

gopilots70 on
June 29th, 2013 7:40 pm

Felix to pinch hit in the bottom of the inning?

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:41 pm

But at the time, who on Earth would have thought Ackley would be injured that late?! Playing the odds, it would have made sense to pinch run for Ibanez. However, I don’t fault Wedge by any means for wanting to hold Saunders back. He probably had no intention of using him at all given the hand injury, and understandably so. Just a really weird game all the way around.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:43 pm

I think you could rearrange guys such that Blanco isn’t in the outfield.

I’m not saying it would be optimal… But it could be done.

In any case I still think Saunders should’ve been running for Morales earlier that inning.

brian m on
June 29th, 2013 7:45 pm

DJ Peterson has a .185 BABIP, small sample size and all, he might just be in line for some regression.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 7:45 pm

Okay good luck guys – I have to go pick up my daughter.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:45 pm

Nice framing job there. Strike two was real low.

Kazinski on
June 29th, 2013 7:46 pm

But at the time, they were playing for a tie late in the game, Ibanez wasn’t the go ahead run. So you don’t want to give up the DH, and your last reserve OF in any circumstances, except an injury.

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:47 pm

Somebody go ahead and correct me if I’m wrong…but does it seem to anyone else that Smoak is laying off those 59-foot breaking pitches a LOT better than he used to?

HighlightsAt11 on
June 29th, 2013 7:47 pm

Joe Saunders on deck. That just sounds strange.

SonOfZavaras on
June 29th, 2013 7:48 pm

Wow. Zu just didn’t handle the pure cheddar, there.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 7:54 pm

@Kazinski

Ibanez wasn’t the DH. Assuming you knew that, they wouldn’t have been giving up their DH by pinch running with Saunders. But as I suggested, it’s hard to fault Wedge for wanting to hold on to Saunders. He was the last option and he’s nursing an injury. I get it.

msfanmike on
June 29th, 2013 7:57 pm

Yeah, you are right Kaz. I went back and re-read your logic trail, but the Ackley injury was unknown at the time Wesge made his decision. If I remember this awesome awesome game, correctly.

Awesome game.

gopilots70 on
June 29th, 2013 8:00 pm

Have the Mariners gone into one game since April 30 with every position player in the field or on the bench really ready to hit and play the field?

Their hesitance to use the DL baffles me. They said that Jesus Sucre would be back in two or three days so we had no back up catcher. He never came back and is now on the DL.

Morse, Smoak same deal. And now the same with Saunders. How long will they keep him on the bench when he can’t play?

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 8:05 pm

Sucre was/is on the 15 day DL almost immediately. But I’m wondering if he isn’t a candidate for the 60 day, retro-active. Montero would be another.

gopilots70 on
June 29th, 2013 8:13 pm

Wedge absolutely should have pinch run Saunders for Ibanez in the eighth. You play to win the game right there especially at home.

There was nothing to save Saunders for as he was not available to hit or play the field. We saw this later as they refused to put him in the field rather than lose the DH. But they did pinch run him.

Wedge cost us the game there, cost us the game by running Bay earlier in the inning, cost us the game by hit and running with Ryan in the second after three straight hits. (Ryan is incapable of executing at the plate–either hit and run, bunting, hitting behind the runner)

Three times in one game. How long will they stick with this manager? Stupid, stupid decisions

don52656 on
June 29th, 2013 8:16 pm

Among other things, this games begs the question of why we need to have 12 pitchers on a 25-man roster, especially with the fragility of so many guys on the team.

gopilots70 on
June 29th, 2013 8:17 pm

Sucre was hurt on a Tuesday and not placed on the DL until Saturday.

From the M’s Greg Johns:

“Sucre has been sidelined by a left hand injury since getting hit by a bat on a backswing on Tuesday against the White Sox. Veteran Kelly Shoppach has played every inning at catcher since then — including Wednesday’s 16-inning marathon — until rookie Brandon Bantz was inserted into the starting lineup for Saturday afternoon’s game with the Yankees.”

Inexcusable–the last word is from me not Johns.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 8:27 pm

Ah, I stand corrected. I was thinking of the time when Zunino was promoted. That came well after. Completely spaced the Bantz experiment.

But to fair regarding the non-pinch running call tonight, we don’t know how Saunders is feeling. If his hand was pretty sore, he would be risking further injury. I know he eventually used him anyway, but there wasn’t much left at that point.

If it were me, not knowing all the details and just going off what the rest of us knew at the time, I would have have pinch-ran for Ibanez with Saunders. But this is one of the few times I’ll give Wedge the benefit of the doubt.

Really, I still can’t believe what a weird game that was.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 8:31 pm

The pinch & run calls, assuming they were called by Wedge, were among the weird things we saw. Especially the one with Ryan.

@Don
Pitchers are usually the more fragile ones. It does make sense to have 12.

Kazinski on
June 29th, 2013 8:40 pm

Wedge absolutely should have pinch run Saunders for Ibanez in the eighth. You play to win the game right there especially at home.

How do you play for the win when you are down by a run, with just one runner on base and 2 outs? I am no Eric Wedge fan, but there isn’t any manager that is going to PR for Ibanez there, and give up the DH when the best case is a tie game. If Smoak hits a homer and puts you ahead then Ibanez’ speed isn’t a factor.

I criticized Wedge at the time for not using Saunders, and it took me two innings to figure out he didn’t couldn’t of. He did use Saunder’s when he could the next inning and he did score the tying run there.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 8:47 pm

^But they wouldn’t be giving up the DH if Saunders could go into the field as well. If his hand was so bad that he couldn’t play the outfield, then they probably shouldn’t risk him injuring it further while running.

But we don’t know the extent of that, despite seeing Saunders run eventually anyway. Point is, it’s kind of pointless for us to argue it either way.

stevemotivateir on
June 29th, 2013 8:51 pm

“The pinch and run calls”

Really, I hope everyone can laugh when I do something like that. My excuse is that I’m 4 hours ahead of PST, and deprived myself of sleep to finish this game.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 9:20 pm

That sounds more like locker room hijinks, Steve.

Westside guy on
June 29th, 2013 9:58 pm

According to Wedge, Ackley’s thumb is sprained not broken, so – stop me if you’ve heard this before – they hope he’ll only be out a couple days and are going to try to just go with the guys they have right now.

Saunders will try to swing a bat tomorrow.

Yeah, I have full confidence that this team will make the right decisions in this… After all, we’ve seen other hurt Mariners perform on so very well playing through injuries. No, we didn’t see their hitting suffer at all.

gopilots70 on
June 29th, 2013 10:00 pm

I did mis-speak when I said “going for the win” but really you still are. I think most managers pinch run for Ibanez.

Most managers show confidence in their team. If Saunders pinch, he scores, Smoak is either out or sitting on second base and you still have a chance to win the game right there. The best case is having a lead in the ninth. The worst case is tying the game and having the chance to win in the bottom of the ninth.

Losing the DH would not stopped most managers there. Yes, they would have thought about it long and hard.

You put Bay in left, improve your defense for the ninth, and you don’t lose the DH for six or seven batters as you would lose Ibanez’ place. IF that spot comes up you still have Blanco to pinch hit for the pitcher and now that pushes another three innings until you are “embarrassed” like we were tonight with a pitcher hitting.

Most managers show their players that they have confidence to in them to produce.

Most managers do not worry about being embarrassed about something that “might” happen two or three innings later. They play to win now.

I have watched the Yankees on TV for years and Joe Girardi definitely would have run for Ibanez there in my opinion.

Tired of hearing the manger say he is worried about some hypothetical two innings down. More often than not it does not materialize and you are just left with a bad first decision.

Jake on
June 29th, 2013 10:03 pm

The Royals DFA’ed Jeff Francoeur.

With the awful outfield situation, Oliver Perez may well be shipped off to KC for Francoeur. Ugh.

Bodhizefa on
June 29th, 2013 10:28 pm

Westside Guy, it’s gotten to the point of absurdity how this team has treated injuries. Allowing a guy who’s trying to get his confidence and mental approach righted to play while having an injured hand is tantamount to madness. I no longer trust the medical staff and management to make the right calls on these things. DL the dude and let him heal up for gosh sakes.

MrZDevotee on
June 29th, 2013 10:57 pm

This is just nuts. I missed the game, just catching up on it by reading the thread…

How many dead/injured/banged-up guys can one team have?

And what’s the use of putting them on the DL if there’s no one who can replace them?

Comical would be a compliment to the situation we’re in… It’s way past that now.

Just absurd.

There’s a part of me that thinks “Just bring Tacoma up to take the place of the Seattle team…” Send everybody home but Felix, ‘Kuma, Seager, Ibanez, Bay, and the young guys we just called up…

This train is no longer even on the tracks. It’s upside down, on the side of mountain, steam and ash spewing out the smokestack. And a couple of deer standing next to it, looking at each other like “WTF?”

gopilots70 on
June 30th, 2013 12:40 am

Mr Z,

It really is absurd and there really is no one to call up. Looking at the 40 man roster, there are only two options in the outfield: Carlos P. and Morban.

In the infield there are zero because we just sent down Triunfel and he must stay there ten days I believe.

At catcher, again zero, because for some reason Jesus Montero has been taking up space there for how long? A month?

Lots of pitching options but no one we really want to see here other than Hultzen and Walker.

Strange.

Happy to note that I appear to be totally wrong on my view on the severity of the Ackley injury. Day to day they say. Which means a week to ten days on the roster unable to play and than DL’d after he is not ready.

Don Money on
June 30th, 2013 3:04 am

As I saw the play, Raul was out by less than a foot and it took an excellent play by the left fielder who had bobbled several fielding opportunities previously, like Raul’s triple. I also don’t consider Raul slow, that would be used for the likes of Montero, maybe Morales, who was pinch run for. Wedge’s moves made sense considering Saunder’s condition. Bay running on first movement, just like Coco Crisp did with the same result, was the gaffe of the game. As for criticizing Wedge for the hit and run with Ryan and Ackley, that was a favorite move by Lou Pinella, as he thought it helped a slumping batter to focus on making contact. It didn’t always work for him either.

stevemotivateir on
June 30th, 2013 7:39 am

^The fact that the play at the plate was close, is exactly why people are questioning the lack of a pinch runner. Raul isn’t fast. Probably runs better than Smoak, but it’s reasonable to assume Saunders could have had that extra step that was needed.

Having said that, again, I understand the likely reasoning for not pinch running there. Despite the loss and the injury, I really enjoyed that game!

Will on
June 30th, 2013 9:57 am

We traded Eric Thames for Ty Kelly, who was rated the 19th best prospect in the O’s organization by Minor League Ball. Still would rather have Steve Delabar with our bullpen woes, but surprised we got at least a decent prospect for a guy that we DFA’d.

Westside guy on
June 30th, 2013 10:22 am

Ryan Divish, when tweeting about the trade with Baltimore for DFA’ed Eric Thames, said “remember Thames has a broken hand right now and could not help the club’s outfield situation”.

I was completely unaware that Thames had a broken hand. I’m guessing I’m not the only one!

MrZDevotee on
June 30th, 2013 11:37 am

Wait, did I read that correctly… (Here and other places)

We’re trading major league outfield talent for minor league infield depth?

Broken hand or not, I’m flabbergasted. This is a joke, right?

We’re trading from a weakness, for a position player where we’re most solid at with prospects?

Wow. Just wow.

If having a broken bone in your hand gets you sent to another team, why do I sense an onslaught of broken bones in Tacoma the next couple weeks… “Gonna have to trade me, Z… I slammed my finger in a car door.”

MrZDevotee on
June 30th, 2013 11:40 am

Okay, nevermind… I was a bit rash.

He’s played mostly 3B… So we traded a broken handed washed up guy for the only 3B depth in our organization.

Makes sense. Sorry, Z. Fan rant over.

Sorry, I’m just seriously stuck in a rut of gut-wrenching “What next?” anxiety this season.